Gorgon
/ˈɡɔːrɡən/noun
In Greek mythology, one of three monstrous sisters whose gaze was said to turn people to stone.
Did you know?The Gorgons were so deeply embedded in Greek imagination that their faces were used as apotropaic symbols—terrifying images meant to ward off evil by scaring it away.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
Γοργώ (Gorgṓ) / γοργός (gorgós)
“"Terrible," "dreadful," or "grim"; the name of the monstrous Gorgon figure is linked to this adjective.”
Classical Greek
Greek
Γοργόνες (Gorgónes)
“The Gorgons, monstrous female beings in myth.”
Late Latin
Latin
gorgo / gorgon
“A Gorgon; a terrifying, monstrous creature.”
Old French
Old French
gorgone
“A Gorgon, especially in learned or mythological usage.”
Middle English
English
gorgone / gorgon
“A Gorgon; later, any woman regarded as fierce or monstrous in appearance or temper.”
Modern English
English
gorgon
“A terrifying, hideous, or repulsively stern woman; also, one of the mythological Gorgons.”
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